Historia pontificum et comitum Engolismensium
Encyclopedia
The Historia pontificum et comitum Engolismensium ("History of the Bishops and Counts of Angoulême") is an anonymous genealogical history of the Taillefer dynasty of the Counts and Bishops of Angoulême
written around 1160. It presents its subject family as a lineage
, concentrating on agnatic descent from its founder, William (Guillaume) Taillefer. It records the legend that Taillefer died defending his lands from the Normans
with a magic sword. For events before 1030 it depends heavily on Adhemar of Chabannes, but thereafter is an independent source. It provides a precise record of the "succession of counts and bishops, of their genealogy, their fights and their alliances".
The text was first published, from one manuscript, by Father Philippe Labbe
in 1657. Further fragments were discovered and edited by Dom Martin Bouquet
and his collaborators before, in 1858, Eusèbe Castaigne published and edited the full text based, not on the manuscripts, but on Labbe and Bouquet et al. A fourteenth-century manuscript from the Angoumois was brought back from the Vatican Archives by George de Manteyer, and formed the basis for the first critical edition, published by Jacques Boussard in 1957, as an extension of the doctoral thesis he defended in 1956 for the Faculty of Letters of the University of Paris
.
Boussard speculates that the author was a canon of the cathedral of Angoulême, perhaps the one in charge of the archives or the library, and certainly a contemporary of the last persons he mentions.
Angoulême
-Main sights:In place of its ancient fortifications, Angoulême is encircled by boulevards above the old city walls, known as the Remparts, from which fine views may be obtained in all directions. Within the town the streets are often narrow. Apart from the cathedral and the hôtel de ville, the...
written around 1160. It presents its subject family as a lineage
Lineage
Lineage may refer to:- Science :* Lineage or kinship, descent group that can demonstrate their common descent from an apical ancestor or a direct line of decent from an ancestor....
, concentrating on agnatic descent from its founder, William (Guillaume) Taillefer. It records the legend that Taillefer died defending his lands from the Normans
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
with a magic sword. For events before 1030 it depends heavily on Adhemar of Chabannes, but thereafter is an independent source. It provides a precise record of the "succession of counts and bishops, of their genealogy, their fights and their alliances".
The text was first published, from one manuscript, by Father Philippe Labbe
Philippe Labbe
Philippe Labbe was a French Jesuit writer on historical, geographical and philological questions.Born in Borges, he entered the Society of Jesus on 28 September 1623, at the age of 16. After literary, philosophical and theological studies, he successively taught classes of rhetoric and philosophy....
in 1657. Further fragments were discovered and edited by Dom Martin Bouquet
Martin Bouquet
Martin Bouquet was a French Benedictine and historian, of the Congregation of St.-Maur. His major work was Rerum Gallicarum et Francicarum Scriptores, a collection of the historians of Gaul and France, which covers the time from France's earliest history until the year 987.-Biography:Bouquet was...
and his collaborators before, in 1858, Eusèbe Castaigne published and edited the full text based, not on the manuscripts, but on Labbe and Bouquet et al. A fourteenth-century manuscript from the Angoumois was brought back from the Vatican Archives by George de Manteyer, and formed the basis for the first critical edition, published by Jacques Boussard in 1957, as an extension of the doctoral thesis he defended in 1956 for the Faculty of Letters of the University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
.
Boussard speculates that the author was a canon of the cathedral of Angoulême, perhaps the one in charge of the archives or the library, and certainly a contemporary of the last persons he mentions.
Editions
- Philippe LabbePhilippe LabbePhilippe Labbe was a French Jesuit writer on historical, geographical and philological questions.Born in Borges, he entered the Society of Jesus on 28 September 1623, at the age of 16. After literary, philosophical and theological studies, he successively taught classes of rhetoric and philosophy....
, ed. "Historia pontificum et comitum Engolismensium". Nova Bibliotheca manuscriptorum, vol. II, 249–64. Paris, 1657. - Jacques Boussard, ed. Historia pontificum et comitum Engolismensium. Paris: Librairie d'Argences, 1957.